Chapter 506: 506

Chapter 506 Show’s Over

Zhang Heng briefly treated his external injuries before returning to his seat at Queen’s Theatre . When he got there, the opera was already coming to an end .

Escamillo and Carmen walked into the crowd at the square outside the bullfighting arena with their heads up high . Carmen remained outside the ring as she watched the valiant Escamillio walking into it . It was around that time that the rowdy-looking Don Jose found her . He begged for reconciliation, but Carmen only remained indifferent . At the same time, loud cheers echoed in the arena .

Escamillo defeated the bull . Carmen was elated, proceeding to take off the ring that Don Jose gave her and threw it on the ground . She wanted to rush into the ring to share the joy with her lover, but in a shocking turn of events, the desperate Don Jose took out the dagger that he prepared to stab Carmen . When the bull had returned, and the arena cleared, only Carmen remained, lying in a pool of her own blood .

“I killed her, Carmen, my dear Carmen!” wailed Don Jose in agony as if the world had come to an end .

At this point, the opera finally ended .

Then all the play’s actors walked onto the stage . The lights came on, and the entire theater was filled with thunderous applause . There were no doubts here that the new play ‘Carmen’ was a runaway success in London .

Zhang Heng stood up as well, applauding and clapping along with the people around him .

After the performance was over, he headed backstage to congratulate Irene Adler .

Throngs of people formed lines to congratulate the beautiful songstress, and even the wife of the prime minister went backstage to give her best wishes personally . Since she had more than her enough of her share of action, Zhang Heng wasn’t inclined to squeeze in and join the fight to congratulate her . He simply stood there quietly, and only after the crowd had almost dispersed, did he approach Adler’s dressing table that was now like an overgrown greenhouse . There were so many flowers that she had to place them next to her dressing table . As for the other actors, they received all but a few .

“I now know how much Londoners adore you,” exclaimed Zhang Heng .

“Really? Pity that you’re not from London then . I saw you leave midway,” Adler replied with a sly smirk .

“Uh… my friend and I have something urgent to deal with . ”

“Well, I can see how urgent the matter is . ” Adler raised his eyebrows and pointed at Zhang Heng’s suit . “You look a little worse for wear, almost catching up to Don Jose’s persona if you

will . ”

“Actually, I just visited the barber . ”

“I see they haven’t the best service, considering the state you’re in . Mind telling me the name of the establishment? I’ll make sure to avoid it in the future,” Adler chuckled .

IIII

As a person who had read the original works, Zhang Heng would, of course, be wary of Irene Adler . That being said, he had to concede that Irene Adler was indeed a very, very, attractive woman . It was no wonder that the King of Bohemia could never forget her . The king was the one at fault . He abandoned Adler in the quest for more power, and after marrying a Scandinavian princess, it led to the photo incident . Judging by Holmes’s attitude toward the case, he was more inclined to take Adler’s side . Not to mention how he became rather disgusted by what the king had done .

That was why he only asked Adler’s picture as payment once the matter was over . At the same time, he refused to shake the king’s hand . Zhang Heng could probably understand Holmes’s appreciation for Irene Adler-she was indeed a brilliant and intriguing woman . Therefore, Zhang Heng decided to act as neutral as possible when dealing with her, careful not to be too elusive or zealous . Even a strong character like Sherlock Holmes did not always act alone . He had the Baker Street Irregulars and police officers that assisted him with his cases . He had friends from all manner of trades . If Zhang Heng wanted to compete with him, he would need his friends for help .

As one of the only four who had beaten Holmes, Irene Adler could just be an excellent candidate to aid Zhang Heng .

“Although you left the hallway, and I was a little mad at that, the very fact that you came back, in the end, makes me willing to forgive you . I’d like to also thank you for waiting outside to congratulate me . Though, I see you brought no flowers with you,” Adler battered her eyelids .

It was a long night for many . When Zhang Heng returned to 221B Baker Street, Holmes hadn’t gone to bed, fiddling instead with an Amazon blowgun in his room . Earlier, he barely survived the attack, but now it seemed his spirits had returned to him .

It was exactly as he said—the more difficult the problem, the more excited he would become . On the contrary, asking him to live an ordinary life was no different from murder . “Interesting, you did not send her home,” Sherlock observed, looking at Zhang Heng at the door .

“I don’t think we are close enough for that…” replied Zhang Heng, “…and don’t worry, my relationship with her is not what you think it

is . ”

“Excellent . Otherwise, they would simply gain another ordinary man falling in love, but lose an excellent detective . ”

Zhang Heng did not continue the topic . “Did you get anything useful from those barbers?” he asked Sherlock, not wanting to dwell on the Adler topic .

“I’m glad that you still remember our case, but unfortunately, as I guessed, they are not affiliated with Mr . M’s criminal gang . At least, I found out who beat us up in the theater tonight . ”

“He beat you, but I beat him up for you . Thank you,” Zhang Heng corrected . “It doesn’t matter . Makes no difference to me . In short, that man is called Carlson . According to him, he works in a gun factory . I believe the two pieces of information they gave me are 80% false . He got to know the group of barbers when they drank together . As I said, Prussians in London stick together in a group . He had gone into the barbershop, frantically telling them that bad guys were in pursuit of him . Hence, the barbers worked together to fight you off . ”

“Wait, so, they didn’t know that man very well . That would mean you got nothing useful from them…” Zhang Heng frowned .

“You’re right . But fortunately, I have fought him earlier, and I got something useful when he strangled me . ”

“Mm?”

Holmes put down the blowgun in his hand .

“That man has extraordinary skills . They are simple yet practical . When he put me down, I could see that he was in the army before . And he is definitely Prussian . I believe I’ve mentioned it to you before . Other than that, he is also a gambler . I saw the watch on his right hand-it should be quite valuable, but it has some sort of ticket number on it . It is exactly what London pawnshops would usually do . They would use a needle to engrave the number on the back of the watch, much like tagging the item with a pricetag—this was done to avoid confusion . Typically challenging to spot with the naked eye, I managed to touch it when I was struggling . There are at least three numbers, which means that he has pawned this watch three times . He would repurchase it from the pawnbroker each time, indicating that he acquires a large amount of money once in a while . So, the question is, where did that money come from?” “Mr . M?”

“Yes, we will need to head to the casino tomorrow . I have a hunch we are very close to the mastermind behind the whole thing!” said Holmes .

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